As the proposed Adani Carmichael mine development heats up, more and more pressure is being placed on the company to provide job opportunities for Queenslanders.

The Carmichael mine, has been slated as the biggest coal mine in the world, when it is in full production. There has been a lot of media around this proposed development in the Galilee Basin of Queensland. This new and undeveloped coal resource is ready to unlock billions of tonnes of thermal coal each year.

Even with the remote location, mind-boggling construction plans and resistance to the development from green groups, momentum is building – now it’s the time for local MP’s in the region to start pushing for locals to get first pick of the jobs.

The Australian Federal Member for Capricornia Michelle Landry caught up with  Adani’s head honcho’s to make her case for employment preferences on the huge coal mining project.

Jeyakumar Janakaraj, who is Adani’s CEO in Australia, gave the politician a close-up account of how the project was moving forward.

However,  she made the point of the meeting being one where she wanted to question Janakaraj on the preference to employ locals to take advantage of the opportunities the proposed Central Queensland mine would bring.

“What I expect of Adani is an obligation to spin off local employment opportunities,” Ms Landry said.

“This is a significant project and Adani outlined that some individual contracts were worth up to $500million.

“While such contracts might fall outside the capacity of small companies, many had formed links with huge corporations to bid for work.

“They report that so far, 90% of aspects of some individual contracts have involved companies that hire Australian workers.”

What’s next?

Adani is still going through the stages of getting official sign-off from the Australian Federal Government to give the approval for work to begin on the Abbot Point coal loading terminal expansion. It is from this location that the coal from Adani’s proposed Carmichael mine site near Clermont will be exported to India and other destinations that have not yet been announced.

The Adani Carmichael mine has been heralded as a significant milestone in the coal mining sector in Queensland. Reports of anywhere from 2500 – 10,000 new mining jobs being created from the project have been commonplace, although there are no confirmed numbers.

The coal mine will be open-cut, with about 3 underground mines being established. The coal, in most of the mine is found close to the surface, requiring little overburden removal, therefore making the operating costs a lot less than other mines that have been developed.

Estimates of some 60 million tonnes of coal would be exported annually from the Carmichael mine, with a mine life expectation of 30-60 years.

Mining contracts have been handed out

Adani has already started to recruit workers for the project, announcing some months ago that expressions of interest were being taken. Thousands of people have already applied for positions at the mine. Contracts have been handed out to mining services companies to build and operate the mine. Downer EDI were awarded this contract, with Korean engineering company POSCO winning the contract to build the enormous 360 kilometre rail link from the mine to the port.

What jobs are on offer at Adani?

Owing to the mix of proposed open-cut and longwall mining operations, there will be a wide range of opportunities for workers of many skills and qualifications. Construction will kick start the development, followed by machinery operators then general mine site operators. Of course, as the proposed Carmichael mine is in Queensland, there are many regulations in place to protect workers from incidents and accidents.

What training and qualifications are needed to apply for Adani jobs?

There has already been a sharp rise in the number of people contacting iMINCO to find out where they can do their mining induction safety course, known as the Standard 11. This essential course must be completed by all workers who want to find employment in the Queensland coal mining sector – you can’t avoid it.

The qualification is valid for 5 years, with Standard 11 refresher courses available for those workers who have not allowed their Standard 11 to expire for more than 6 months.

CALL [email protected] for more information on where to do your Standard 11.

For machinery operators, their RII qualificatons, also known as Black Coal Competencies must be current. This means if an operator of a dump truck, excavator, front-end loader, grader etc has been working in civil construction or perhaps even the WA mining sector; they must transfer their qualifications to RII.

This is generally done by completing a theory and practical assessment as well as providing evidence of having previously operated a piece of heavy machinery.

Adani News Update:

Adani Mining has reportedly signed contracts with potential buyers to purchase over 67 of the high-quality thermal coal it plans to dig up from the Carmichael mine in Queensland. Adani Mining Pty Ltd is a wholly-owned subsidiary of Adani Enterprises. The Adani group is estimating  a total annual coal production capacity of around 110 million tonnes per year and plans to ramp up production to 200 MTPA by 2020.